EP2423108A2 - System and method for collecting defect data of components in a passenger cabin of a vehicle - Google Patents

Abstract

The system (2) comprises a component identification unit (6) for identifying an affected component after connecting to the component identification device. A malfunction selecting unit (8) is provided for selecting the malfunction of the identified component from a predefined amount of component-specific malfunctions. A locating device (4) is provided for detecting the position of the affected component in the passenger cabin, while connecting to the component identification unit. An independent claim is included for method for collecting operational failure data of components in passenger cabin of vehicle.

Description

RELATED APPLICATIONS

The present application claims the priority of US Provisional Patent Application No. 61 / 377,016 , filed on 25 August 2010 and the German
Patent application no. 10 2010 035 374.4 , filed on Aug. 25, 2010, the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.

TECHNICAL AREA

The invention relates to a system for collecting defect data of components in a passenger cabin of a vehicle with a component identification device for identifying an affected component and a malfunction selection device connected to the component identification device for selecting a malfunction of the identified component from a predefined set of component-specific malfunctions. The invention also relates to a method for collecting defect data of components in a passenger cabin of a vehicle and a vehicle having a passenger cabin and a system installed in the vehicle for collecting defect data of components in the passenger cabin.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

In vehicles used for the commercial transport of passengers and whose cabin equipment is to be regarded as a strong competitive feature, it is essential to detect defective components in the passenger cabin and collect precise defect data in a central location, to repair as soon as possible to correct the defect enable. The classic method of collecting such defect data in passenger cabins is to carry a paper-based logbook into which vehicle attendants enter defect data that they either themselves have detected or that are communicated to them by individual passengers. The problem here may be that between taking notice of a defect of a component and the final entry in the logbook may take some time, for example, if the car attendant passengers served or collects empty food containers and waste and receives the indication of a defect during this activity. The vehicle attendant can not immediately interrupt his work after taking note of such a message to make the entry in the logbook, but will only end his activity to then record the defect. In the meantime, it may be that the car attendant forgets this or his memory of the defect is only vague and the corresponding entry in the logbook is not quite correct.

EP 1 280 316 A2 shows an electronic version of a logbook, in which different users with different security levels can perform dialog-guided inputs of defect data using a mobile data collection device, can be selected in the affected components and their malfunction. At the same time, the authorization of the respective user is checked. Furthermore, maintenance data generated therefrom for use during a maintenance operation is transmitted to mobile electronic devices.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Collecting defect data from components in a passenger cabin of a vehicle, either manually or electronically, while providing the ability to collect defect data in a central location and later transfer it to a maintenance system, there is still some uncertainty regarding the precision of the detected defect data. The object of the invention is therefore to propose a system for collecting defect data of components in a passenger cabin of a vehicle, in which the highest possible precision with respect to the defective component, the location of the defective component and the defect of the defective component is achieved.

Another object of the invention is to propose such a system in which the least possible manual effort on the part of a vehicle attendant or a passenger exists.

The object is achieved by a system having the features of independent claim 1. Advantageous developments can be found in the dependent claims.

According to a first aspect of the invention, the system comprises a component identification device for identifying an affected component, preferably from a predefined total of components in the passenger cabin, and a malfunction selection device connected to the component identification device for selecting a malfunction of the identified component from a predefined set of component-specific malfunctions , According to the invention, this is supplemented by a localization device which can detect the position of an affected component in the passenger cabin and with the detected position through the connection with a component identification device triggers an identification of the component at the detected position. The aim of this structure is to carry out a localization of the affected component directly when detecting defect data, instead of having to remember the details of the defective component, to have to resort to an inaccurate indication of a passenger or to take over a reading error in the determination of an associated seat or the like , The advantage lies in the fact that the identification of the affected component takes place only after a localization and thus can rule out a human error.

The localization device is set up to determine a position of a component in the three-dimensional space bounded by the walls of the passenger cabin with sufficient accuracy. In the prior art exist a variety of localization systems that can be structured differently. It seems practicable that this locating means comprise a series of base stations fixedly arranged in the passenger cabin and spaced from each other and arranged to detect the position of a pointing device. In this case, the localization device can, for example, resort to the measurement of transit time differences between signals exchanged between the individual base stations and the pointing device, so as to determine relative positions to the individual base stations, which can finally be correlated to a three-dimensional position within the passenger cabin. The transit time differences could relate to the propagation of electromagnetic waves or, for example, ultrasonic waves.

The component identification device is connected to the localization device and can, for example from a component database with component identification data and associated three-dimensional positions, identify a component or a component group at the detected position from an incoming position. An error about the component in question can thus be sufficiently accurate be ruled out, since knowledge of seat row, seat number or the like is obsolete and the localization device in turn can forward the exact position to the component identification device. From the list of candidate components identified (device list), the user can select the relevant component and forward the component identification to the malfunctioning device.

The malfunction selection device can not automatically detect a present malfunction based on the identification of the component. However, since only a limited number of malfunctions are usually possible for each component in question, they could be filtered out by the malfunction selector for a selection dialog from a malfunction database or an internal memory unit. The malfunction selection device preferably has a collection of known malfunctions that could be detected on an identified component. The malfunction selection device therefore allows the listing of all conceivable malfunctions on a display unit from which a user can select the malfunction actually detected. This has the particular advantage that free-text information on a present malfunction can be omitted, which rarely reproduce the error sufficiently accurate. The limitation of the available malfunctions further facilitates the transfer of defect data to a maintenance system, since the maintenance system then only has to generate maintenance instructions from a completed set of possible malfunctions without having to interpret free-text information or the like.

In an advantageous embodiment, the system according to the invention has a pointing device for marking a relevant component for the localization device. The pointing device may be designed to be a unique, passive object for the locator is located inside the passenger cabin and is optically or due to other physical properties not confused with other objects or components. On the other hand, the pointing device can also be embodied as an active component which transmits a locating signal which can be evaluated by base stations fixedly arranged in the passenger cabin. The scope of the present invention is not intended to be limited to particular locators or pointing devices, therefore, in this context, various types of pointing devices are merely exemplified. For example, a pointing device could emit an electromagnetic or acoustic signal that can be received by components of the locator. From the determination of transit time differences of this signal at the different base stations, the relative position of the pointing device can be determined uniquely by the individual base stations of the localization device. The pointing device could further include an eye-catching coloring or other features that can be recognized by suitable components of a locating device. Here, however, it is necessary that, for example, base stations, cameras or the like are arranged in a sufficiently large number within the passenger cabin, so that the pointing device can be seen by as many as possible of such components of the localization device, even if they optically to one or more sides of the Passenger cabin is covered.

In an advantageous embodiment of the invention, the component identification device is set up to filter a component group with one or more components of the passenger cabin for a selection dialog using the detected position of the component concerned from a component identification data and position data of component database containing component database, which are in the immediate vicinity of detected position of the affected component is located. If the component in question is a rather small component or leaves If the component does not clearly mark, without also touching or covering adjacent components with the pointing device, it makes sense to allow the identification of adjacent components in the form of a group of components in order to exclude later possible errors or always perform a new position determination until the right Component has been identified. Depending on the localization technology used, however, the achievable positioning accuracy can be within a range of +/- 10 cm, so that it is also recommended for this reason to identify a component group with components that are adjacent to one another. Using a simple selection dialog, you can quickly and easily select between the neighboring components.

In an advantageous embodiment of the invention, the malfunction selection device is set up to filter possible malfunctions for a selected component from a predefined malfunction database for a selection dialog. A selection dialog on a suitable device connected to the malfunction selection device can thus quickly lead to a precise determination of the present error case.

In an equally advantageous embodiment of the invention, the component identification device and the malfunction selection device are connected to an electronic device, wherein the electronic device has a display unit and is configured to display a selection dialog and further comprises an input unit with which a user can interact with the selection dialog. As indicated above, a particular feature of the system of the present invention is the provision of a set of candidate components and, upon selection of the component in question, the provision of a limited amount of predefined malfunctions to obtain as accurate a malfunction description as possible for an identified component. The user can use the input device through the Navigate selection dialog using a preferred graphical user interface, in addition to text information and illustrations of components can be included.

In an equally advantageous embodiment, the electronic device is set up to transmit component identification data and malfunction data to a memory unit, which is preferably a digital logbook or a component of a digital logbook in the form of a central defect database. Identified malfunctions can thus be stored in a single location, like a paper-based logbook, from where they can later be automated into a maintenance system.

In an advantageous embodiment, the component identification device has a component database in which the three-dimensional positions of all components in the passenger cabin of the aircraft are correlated with component identification data. This makes it possible later to draw conclusions about the relevant component, if a localization of the relevant component is carried out. Component identification data can be present in any form, for example as a part number, which can be supplemented by an exact seating position or the like. In addition to this, it would also be conceivable to include plain text information which could be helpful for indicating a faulty component identification. The database could be treated like a readout table. The evaluation table does not necessarily have to be two-dimensional, but may also be embodied three-dimensionally, in which positions with component identification data are contained as data points in a given two- or three-dimensional grid, so that if a three-dimensional position is present, easily fitting component identification data can be read out.

All of the aforementioned databases, such as the defect database, the malfunction database, the component database or the like, as well as the component identification device and the malfunction selection device do not necessarily have to be implemented with the aid of different electronic devices or computing units, but it is generally advisable to have a single computing device with one or more database applications using multiple records, databases, or tables and correlating positions with part identification data. Integration of the various components using a single computing unit would reduce the complexity of the system of the invention, as well as weight and integration costs. In the interests of improved reliability, conventional measures could be used to increase the reliability of electronic systems, although it should be remembered that such a system for collecting or collecting defect data in accordance with the invention has no mission criticality.

In an advantageous embodiment, the electronic device could be designed as a mobile computing unit, for example in the form of a PDA, a mobile PC or any other mobile electronic device. It should be ensured that this electronic device has a data connection device, with the help of which necessary component identification data and malfunction data can be transmitted. Alternatively, it would also be conceivable that all data required for the function are contained in this mobile arithmetic unit and can be regularly updated by a corresponding data connection or a data carrier, in particular after replacement of one or more components in the passenger cabin.

In an advantageous embodiment of the invention, the electronic device has a pointing device for spatially marking the affected component. The electronic device can thus be used as the sole compact unit for detecting and Detecting a malfunction can be used without having to resort to an external, additional pointing device.

In an equally advantageous embodiment, it makes sense to equip the electronic device with a reading device for transponders, which in addition to the electronic three-dimensional position determination allows the reading of transponder information of adjacent components, so that the component identification can be further improved. In general, the transponders may be so-called RFID tags which, when excited by an external electromagnetic field, are caused to emit a characteristic data record containing, for example, component identification data. If the electronic device is held in the vicinity of a whole series of components and a localization is performed there, in addition to the electronically determined position, a set of component identification data is obtained by reading the transponder, so that it can be checked by the electronic device, if the component identification device of the invention Systems has not identified a component, but has transmitted a record using a transponder to the electronic device (more complete actual configuration).

As a result, it would no longer be necessary to identify all the components in a current component identification database (cabin layout) but, for example, easily reconfigurable (movable) components whose positions are difficult to record during ongoing aircraft operation (eg life jackets, class divider, fire extinguishers or the like) the component identification database can be detected by simultaneous localization of the exact location in the passenger cabin. This additional information thus obtained could also be used to update the component identification database during operation.

In general, the absolute position coordinates of the defect as additional information to the component identification is a valuable additional information, since it can be reconstructed for maintenance ultimately independent of human or computerized inaccuracies of any report or computer errors, the location of the defect. Also on large components (cracks in panels, stains on a carpet, etc.), the exact positions of defects can be found again.

Preferably, the electronic device is a mobile electronic device having a data connection device for communicating with the
Localization device, wherein the data connection device comprises in particular wireless data connection devices, so that the electronic device is universally applicable and within the entire passenger cabin for detecting defect data.

Particularly preferably, the component identification device, the malfunction selection device and optionally also the databases necessary for this purpose are integrated into the mobile electronic device.

Likewise, it may be appropriate to provide the mobile electronic device with a data connection device so that it can communicate with an externally executed component identification device and / or malfunction selection device for processing selection dialogs should these components of the system according to the invention not be integrated into the electronic device.

In an advantageous embodiment, the pointing device may be implemented as an optical pointing device including a distance meter. Thus, instead of using a housing edge of a pointing device, for example, the user could already from a certain distance the desired component or visually mark its position, for example with the aid of a laser beam. To determine the correct position of the marker point, the pointing device should include an additional position sensor to determine a spatial orientation relative to the locator. The position of the pointing device, to which the orientation of the pointing device and the connecting line between the pointing device and the marking point would have to be added vectorially, would then result in the exact position of the component to be selected. In this way, for example, a disturbance of passengers could be avoided in closely-fitted passenger cabins, if the component in question is visible but not easily accessible to a vehicle attendant without, for example, passengers having to get up and the like.

The object of the invention is further achieved by a method for collecting defect data of components in a passenger cabin of a vehicle with the features of the further independent claim. Advantageous developments can be found in the following subclaims. In principle, the method according to the invention initially has the method steps listed below, which enable an improved collection of defect data of components. After detecting a defect of a component of the component in question is located by means of the localization device, which forwards the marked position of the component to a component identification device, where then from the three-dimensional position of the relevant component whose identification is obtained. This could, for example, consist of reading a table, which is in a two- or three-dimensional form, in which positions within the passenger cabin are correlated with component identification data. If the identification of the component has succeeded, the malfunction selection device retrieves all imaginable malfunctions of the identified component from a database, a memory or the like and presents the possible malfunctions to a user. After selecting the appropriate malfunction, it eventually becomes stored together with the component identification data in a defect database. As a result, the present defect can be precisely, unambiguously and unequivocally transferred to a defect database without manual input, free text information, misinformation or faded memory being able to falsify the present error.

Finally, the object is also achieved by an aircraft which has at least one passenger cabin which is equipped with a system according to the invention. Especially in large, modern commercial aircraft with a significantly three-digit number of passenger seats, nowadays a very high level of equipment and comfort for passengers, there are a variety of different components with completely different possible malfunctions, so that flight attendants stated defects must adhere precisely to a timely repair or to ensure maintenance. The system according to the invention simplifies this very clearly, since the cabin crew member does not have to worry about the exact positioning of the component, its designation and the possible malfunctions, and due to the limited choice of possible malfunctions without the need for free text information in a very short time provides precise information about the detected defect is made possible. This further increases the comfort on board the aircraft, because it can be ensured, for example by connecting with a maintenance system, that the comfort in all seats can always be maintained.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES

• Fig. 1 zeigt das erfindungsgemäße System in einer schematischen Darstellung.
• Fig. 2 zeigt den Ablauf des Markierens und Auswählens eines Gerätes und einer Fehlfunktion in einer schematischen Darstellung.
• Fig. 3 zeigt das erfindungsgemäße Verfahren in einer schematischen, blockbasierten Darstellung.
• Fig. 4 zeigt schließlich ein Flugzeug, das eine Passagierkabine aufweist, die mit mindestens einem erfindungsgemäßen System ausgestattet ist.

Other features, advantages and applications of the present invention will become apparent from the following description of the embodiments and the figures. In this case, all described and / or depicted features alone and in any combination, the subject matter of the invention, regardless of their composition in the individual claims or their relations. In the figures, the same reference numerals for identical or similar objects.

• Fig. 1 shows the system according to the invention in a schematic representation.
• Fig. 2 shows the process of marking and selecting a device and a malfunction in a schematic representation.
• Fig. 3 shows the inventive method in a schematic, block-based representation.
• Fig. 4 Finally, shows an aircraft having a passenger cabin, which is equipped with at least one system according to the invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF EXEMPLARY EMBODIMENTS

In Fig. 1 the system 2 according to the invention is shown, which has a localization device 4, a component identification device 6 and a malfunction selection device 8. The locator 4 is in contact with a pointing device 10 to determine the position of the pointing device 10 within the cab. The location may be based, for example, on the measurement of propagation delays of electromagnetic or acoustic waves emitted by the pointing device to a plurality of base stations 12 or other counterparts within the passenger cabin. For the exact determination of a spatial position, four or more base stations 12 or receiving devices are preferably located at defined locations in the passenger cabin to install. In the prior art exist a variety of different types of localization devices, on the selection of which the present invention is not limited.

The system 2 of the invention is capable of identifying components located within the vicinity of the pointing device 10 by determining the three-dimensional position of the pointing device 10 within the passenger cabin. For this purpose, the component identification device, for example, consults a component identification database 14, in which spatial positions of components are correlated in a tabular manner with their component identification data. In the presence of a three-dimensional position, components that can be considered can be identified, which can be presented to a user for selection, for example with the aid of a graphical user interface 16.

After selecting the relevant component 16 having a detected defect, a predefined set of potential malfunctions can be compiled with the aid of the malfunction selection device 8 by way of example and presented to a user for selection, for example with the aid of a further graphical user interface 20 ,

After selecting the appropriate malfunction, there is accordingly a data record with exact component identification data and exact malfunction data that can be transferred to a logbook application 22. This could be associated with a defect or logbook database 24 or other storage device which centrally stores all malfunctions or other defect data present within the passenger cabin and can then be uniquely transferred to a maintenance system for generating maintenance notes or maintenance plans. The component identification device 6, the malfunction selection device 8 and the log application 22 do not necessarily have to be implemented as independent hardware-based devices, but can also be installed in the form of application programs on a stationary or mobile device which can communicate with the localization device 4 via a suitable data connection , The component identification database 14 and the malfunction database 18 are easily portable and executable in the current technical development of mobile devices such as PDAs.

The pointing device 10 also does not necessarily have to be implemented as a separate device, but could be implemented in the form of an application in combination with a suitable electronic component for emitting electromagnetic or acoustic waves on the mobile device, so that all in Fig. 1 components shown with the exception of the base stations 12 of the localization device 2 within a single mobile device.

The identification of a component or a component group can additionally be improved by the use of a reader 26 for transponders 28, for example RFID tags. Especially with small components, which are arranged in conjunction with other small components, so that a clear localization by means of the localization device 4 is made difficult, the evasion of the acquisition of transponder data offers. In addition, when detecting transponder data, the determined position within the car can still be determined in order to store this position together with the transponder data. This facilitates both the maintenance of the device database 14, since not all three-dimensional positions of all the smaller components in the Passenger cabin must be detected and continue the maintenance because the maintenance personnel can see at a glance where the defective component is located inside the cabin.

The different versions will be in Fig. 2 a little more detail. A vehicle attendant 30 operates a pointing device 32, which is implemented in the form of a PDA having an electronic component with antenna 34 for emitting electromagnetic waves for localization and / or data transmission. The vehicle attendant 30 holds the pointing device 32 to a component 36 and triggers a localization by actuating an input device, so that, for example, runtime differences between the pointing device 32 and base stations 12 within the passenger cabin are determined and correlated with position data of the base stations 12. The localization can also be referred to as "marking a defective device". Since in the illustrated component 36 a passenger seat is present, which has a whole series of different independent components, due to the determined position, the identification of the relevant component 38, a defective armrest, can not be made quite clearly. For this reason, the component identification device 6 is preferably designed to present all the components located in the immediate vicinity of the pointing device 32 on a display unit 40, on which the graphical user interface 16 is made Fig. 1 is shown, from which then the relevant component 38 can be selected. The display unit 40 could be either stationary in the form of a cabin or vehicle attendant panel 42 or integrated with the pointing device 32, as in FIG Fig. 2 is shown on the right.

In addition, a transponder data record which identifies the component 36 as a passenger seat can also be read by means of a reader 26 integrated into the pointing device 32 for transponders 28.

After selecting the defective component, the present malfunction can likewise be selected with the aid of a graphical user interface 20.

To simplify the entry of defect data into a digital logbook 22, it makes sense to support a mobile device in a central location within the passenger cabin, which is released from a holder when defects become known and then guided to the relevant component. This would correspond to the presentation Fig. 2 where integration of the component identification device 6, the malfunction selection device 8 and the pointing device 32 within this mobile device would be preferable in larger vehicles because a single pointing device 32 for locating a component and then processing selection dialogues on a cabin panel 42 is not necessarily practical.

Fig. 3 shows in a schematic, block-based representation of a method according to the invention, which is capable of solving the problem posed by the invention. The method begins with the step of locating 42 a pointing device, followed by filtering 44 of candidate components. In addition, the reading 46 of transponder data of the relevant component can be carried out. After providing a query dialog 48 and a corresponding selection by a vehicle attendant, a set of potential malfunctions is filtered 50 from a predefined set of possible malfunctions and provided to the vehicle attendant 52 in the form of a selection dialog. Hereinafter, a data record with component identification data and malfunction data is sent to a central Storage unit transfers 54, which is exemplified as a defect database 24 executed.

Fig. 4 Finally, FIG. 1 shows a commercial aircraft 56 having a passenger cabin 58 equipped with a system 2 according to the invention. In particular, for larger commercial aircraft with a large number of installed components within the passenger cabin, it is recommended to use the system 2 according to the invention in order to transfer malfunction data and component identification data into a digital logbook as precisely and error-free as possible in order to enable timely maintenance.

In addition, it should be noted that "having" does not exclude other elements or steps, and "a" or "an" does not exclude a plurality. It should also be appreciated that features described with reference to any of the above embodiments may also be used in combination with other features of other embodiments described above. Reference signs in the claims are not to be considered as limiting.

Claims (15)

A system (2) for collecting defect data from components (36, 38) in a passenger cabin of a vehicle - A component identification device (6) for identifying an affected component and a malfunction selection device (8) connected to the component identification device for selecting a malfunction of the identified component from a predefined set of component-specific malfunctions, characterized by a localization device (4) for detecting a position of the affected component in the passenger cabin, which is connected to the component identification device. System according to claim 1,
characterized by a pointing device (10) for marking a relevant component for the localization device (4). System according to claim 1 or 2,
characterized in that the component identification device (6) is adapted to filter a component group with one or more components of the passenger cabin for a selection dialog using the detected position of the component concerned from a component identification data and position data of components component database (14) located in the immediate vicinity of the detected position of the affected component (36, 38). System according to one of the preceding claims,
characterized in that the malfunction selection means (8) is adapted to detect possible malfunctions of a selected component from a to filter a predefined set of malfunctioning malfunction database (18) for a selection dialog. System according to one of the preceding claims,
characterized by an electronic device (32, 42) connected to the component identification means (6) and the malfunction selection means (8) and comprising a display unit (40) and an input unit for providing a selection dialog operable by the input unit. System according to claim 5,
characterized in that the electronic device (32, 42) is adapted to transmit component identification data and malfunction data of the selected component to a memory unit (24). System according to claim 5 or 6,
characterized in that the electronic device (32) has a pointing device (10) for spatially marking the affected component. System according to one of claims 5 to 7,
characterized in that the electronic device (32) further comprises a transponder reading device (26) for reading out transponders (28) of components. System according to one of claims 5 to 8,
characterized in that the electronic device (32) is a mobile electronic device and has a data connection device for communicating with the localization device (4). System according to claim 9,
characterized in that the component identification means (6), the malfunction selection means (8), the component database (14) and the malfunction database (18) are implemented in the form of software applications installed on the mobile electronic device (32) and connected to the localization means (4 ) communicate. System according to claim 9,
characterized in that the mobile electronic device (32) is adapted to communicate with an externally executed component identification device (6) and / or malfunction selection device (8) for processing selection dialogues. System according to claim 2,
characterized in that the pointing device (10) is embodied as an optical pointing device which includes a distance measuring device for determining the distance between the pointing device and the relevant component (36, 38) and a position sensor for detecting the spatial orientation of the pointing device. A method of collecting defect data from components in a passenger cabin of a vehicle, comprising the steps of: Detecting (42) the position of an affected component, - filtering (44) a component group with one or more components, which are arranged in the immediate vicinity of the detected position, from a component database, Providing (48) a selection dialog for selecting the affected component, - filtering (50) possible malfunctions of the affected component from a malfunction database, Providing (52) a selection dialog for selecting the appropriate malfunction, - depositing (54) component identification data and malfunction data in a memory unit. The method of claim 13, further comprising the step - reading (46) of transponder data of a transponder (28) for component identification. An aircraft comprising a passenger cabin and a system according to any one of claims 1 to 12.

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